Tag: Goal Setting

“Our goals can only be reached through a vehicle of a plan, in which we must fervently believe, and jupon which we must vigorously act. There is no other route to success.”
– Pablo Picasso

Okay, we’re going to keep this simple.

Before writing the goals for 2017, which will be blogging and personal goals, we’ll need to see how 2016 panned out.

If a goal was achieved it’ll be preceded with a yes [Y], if not with a no [N].

Some of the goals might seem rather abstract, but they are realistic goals nonetheless.

Each goal will follow with personal observations:

[Y] Continue fostering the great relationships that have helped me grow as an individual.

This one is a pass, but barely. Have been able to foster some relationships and get to know some friends even more, and have definitely learned a lot from them, but at the same time some older relationships seem to be passing by.

Have met many great people online, but don’t get much of a chance to meet many people in person. Used to meet folks at the local bookstore in Arizona but ironically enough, although this in Texas area is bigger, and has a lot more people, there’s not many places [or at least haven’t found them yet] where one could just sink into a good book at any time. There are local libraries, but am more of a fan of bookstores and cafes. And since had to give up coffee….*cringe*

[Y] Meet new people, and learn as much as possible not only from them, but from the paths that they have chosen to walk, regardless of their reason.

This one is a pass, and brought much personal growth for myself. Having gotten to know many more individuals in many walks of life is definitely refreshing. Getting to know new people is definitely something that’s always intrigued me. Most of my new relationships are of an online basis, and many of these people still mean the world to me. These individuals are certainly not treated any different simply because they haven’t been ‘met in real life’. That said, it’ll be great to meet more as the blog grows and my shyness gets worked on.

Although have been fortunate myself to meet many great people online, unfortunately, don’t get much of a chance to meet many people in person mostly due to work. Used to meet folks often at the local bookstore in Arizona but ironically enough, although am living now in an area of Texas which is bigger, and has a lot more people, there’s not many places [or at least haven’t found them yet] where one could just sink into a good book at any time. There are local libraries, but am more of a fan of bookstores and cafes. And since had to give up coffee….*cringe*…the cafes have been a no go.

[Y] Be even more inquisitive than in the past

That goal is a pass, and it’s gotten me in a lot of trouble, but that’s beside the point. Some people do not like being questioned; they expect people to take their word as gospel. That’s not how yours truly views such things. The second someone cannot be questioned, they hold inherent power of you, whether they know it or not. Furthermore, questioning someone doesn’t mean you do not respect them, appreciate them, love them or even look up to them. Some people though seem to take things personal when you ask them honest questions, as if judging the information means judging them. Such is not the case. At least not for myself.

[Y] Follow my instincts all of the time, no matter how big or small the issue might be.

This has become easier, although it should be automatic since it nets the most benefits. Still, when circumstances in life come up, it’s always intriguing to ruminate upon what the choices and ramifications might be.

[Y] Read 100 books, or 20,000 pages within books [not online or PDFs]. Whatever comes first between those two.

A rather ambitious goal, but a realistic one considering how much reading is part of my life. This goal was attained

If my addition was correct, there were 75 book reviews written and posted [2 of them were reposts about JFK which pushed the total up to 77]. Through some synchronistic circumstances, read quite a bit of HP Lovecraft, Edgar Allan Poe, and Walph Waldo Emerson, all of which haven’t been finished as they’re large volumes and thus haven’t been reviewed. Also read a lot of other works of fiction. Only wrote a handful of reviews on the fiction books, and usually don’t write about those since am pressed for time a lot and have chosen to forgo those. That said, the goal was attained, but it wasn’t as easy as it could/should’a been. The rest of the goal was achieved by reading a fiction, particularly of the dystopian variety. Having an unplanned move into a new house drained a lot of my free time to read and write reviews, poetry and paint, so the numbers could have been higher but hopefully that doesn’t take place this year. Numbers wise, both numbers were passed, although wasn’t sure which came first.

[Y] 10 of the 100 books in the above goal were to be on Philosophy.

This goal was hit, but mostly from the Eastern Philosophy perspective. Still, have learned a lot from this and appreciate it. Having finally read Confucius’ Analects, The I-Ching, and having reread the Art of War, it was definitely great to be able to learn from these timeless pieces, and they did not disappoint.

[Y] Read 1500 articles health, science, finance, history, etc.

This was a pass. Research and reading is one of my main passions so this was achieved. Might have to up this goal this year; we’ll see.

[Y] Write at least 50 book reviews for the blog

Having written at least 75 reviews that were verifiably posted, this goal was a pass. Would like to write 100 reviews in 2017, but that might be overly ambitious? We’ll see.

This goal was definitely a fail, and even cringe at having to check ‘official numbers’; can’t think that more than 2 dozen poems were written in the blog, if that. In fact, in full disclosure, did end up writing more poetry [not really blog suitable], but a lot of it doesn’t see the light of day. However, that said, if it’s not posted it doesn’t count, so this goal was a fail. Really need to rethink goals regarding posting poems in the future. Moreover, also need to quit sacrificing personal time so much for other ventures since it ends up costing me most of my free time in an effort to try and help others.

[N] Paint 50 paintings

This was another missed goal. This goal wasn’t achieved for a few reasons, but it was achievable nonetheless. Part of the reason was that using lower level acrylic paint instead of professional grade paint makes thing quite more complex [didn’t know at a time, still lack experience] and many times what could have been done on the first go using higher quality paint takes a few tries with paint of lesser quality.

That said, we’re upping our game this year [!], and am in the process of getting a bit more professional grade paint supplies and hopefully am able to follow through with my goals. Big thanks to Linda for this one! P.S. If anyone happens to know or have any additional information on where to get quality art supplies for a reasonable price please let me know. Any art websites would also be helpful. Have only ventured into DeviantArt and a few others, but the list is small.

[N] Workout for minimum 30 minutes a day at least 5 times a week

This is close, but we’ll log it as a fail. These are the reasons why:

[1] My workouts usually are 45 minutes to 1 hour and 30 minutes long or so, sometimes longer.
[2] My workouts were usually only 3 times a week, and not 5 times as originally wanted.

Admittedly, by ‘workout’ what’s mean is going to the gym, and not doing yoga at home, or rebounding, or any other type of workout.

That said, have at least been consistent enough to keep going between 3-4 times a week for months now. Knowing this helps justify the expense of having a gym membership, but also helps see where progress was made. This goal will definitely be modified for this year.

A better idea might be a goal in minutes by the end of the year, rather than days gone to the gym? What say you?

[N] Take a lot more time before carrying out all decisions in my life. This will be the most complex, and difficult, but it will yield the greatest results.

This particularly regards mainly work, but seeps into every other aspect of my life if used correctly. Although am admittedly doing better, am still not at the point that am capable of. Having to make significant decisions in matter of seconds, hundreds of times a day, nigh every day of the year like clockwork is not exactly easy, BUT, it’s the life chosen by me, and it’s another passion. That said, obstacles were meant to be overcome, and we’ll get there soon enough.

[Y] Continue to add content to the blog and grow the blog up to at least 500 regular readers

This goal was almost doubled, with about 960 subscribers, although it’s been stuck like that for a few weeks now. Also, there is the issue of some people being unsubscribed a few times even though they didn’t unsubscribe so there’s something rotten in Denmark. Although it makes me want to vent considering how much censorship this blog has faced, we won’t embark on an endless tirade of expletives. Trying to keep this family friendly yah know. We’ll keep this rated G! Still, the goal was hit, and that’s at least reassuring for what it’s worth.

To finalize, all in all, am glad to have set these goals last year. Some goals were achieved easier than others, while others weren’t even half-way realized. There’s still a lot of work to be done, but that’s why we’re here, right?

In hindsight, doing this review definitely helps me prepare for this year, and will ultimately help me grow as an individual.

How did you all fair in your goals for 2016? Did you achieve your goals? Why or why not?

Regardless, always remember that:

“What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you become by achieving your goals.”
– Zig Ziglar